Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas S.A. (Paribas; Bank of Paris and the Netherlands) was a French investment bank based in Paris that in May 2000 merged with Banque National de Paris S.A. to form BNP Paribas.

History[edit]

Lead up[edit]

In the early 1820s, Louis-Raphaël Bischoffsheim founded a private banking establishment in Amsterdam in his own name. His brother Jonathan-Raphaël created a branch in Antwerp in 1827 before settling in Brussels in 1836. Having married Henriette Goldschmidt, the daughter of Frankfurt banker Hayum-Salomon Goldschmidt, Louis-Raphaël Bischoffsheim established the Bischoffsheim, Goldschmidt & Cie bank in Paris in 1846, then in London in 1860. In 1863 he merged these banks with the Banque de Crédit et de Dépôt des Pays-Bas, which he had founded in Amsterdam: the Bischoffsheim family thereby established a powerful multinational banking conglomerate.[1][2]

Creating of Paribas through merger[edit]

The two banks Banque de Crédit et de Dépôt des Pays-Bas and Banque de Paris would merge on January 27, 1872 to create Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas (Paribas).

During its first year of existence, the new bank joined forces with Crédit Lyonnais to head the financial consortium set up to float one-third of the Franco-Prussian War indemnity loan of 3 billion francs for the French government. The major part of the funds raised by Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas came through its Brussels outlet as a result of the close relations established with certain German financiers.[4]

issues for the Balkan states (often in association with German banks), for the Scandinavian countries and for Morocco;

issues in the 1880s and 1900s for Latin America (frequently in association with British houses such as Barings Bank).

World War I and Great Depression[edit]

During the first world war it helped the French government raise funds through war loans, the 'Bons de la Défense Nationale', and it played its part in negotiations to open credit accounts for the French Treasury in Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden. It also helped to raise finance for the weaponry industry (Compagnie Nationale de Matières Colorantes et de Produits Chimiques).[4]

The impact of inflation during the 1920s, combined with the reconstruction effort and moves to expand the bank's activities under the guidance of Horace Finaly (at the head of the bank from 1919 to 1937) led to an increase in the banks capital and further investment in industrial concerns and public utilities.

World War II[edit]

The Second World War eroded its capital and the bank was cut off from its affiliates and correspondent banking partners in the allied countries. It lost a portion of its foreign assets in Central Europe and Norway. Nevertheless it helped in the development of industrial patents for such products as alternative fuels, gasproducing substances and oil-shale.

Post World War II[edit]

Its merchant-banking profile had enabled it to sidestep nationalization in 1945 and Paribas was able to take full advantage of the legislation of 2 December 1945 and 17 May 1946, which ratified the status of a full-service bank. The bank was thus poised to develop its activities freely in commercial banking for French companies and, before long, on an international scale.[4]

The 1960s to 1980 saw Paribas start an investment bank in NewYork which it expanded into an internal banking network with offices in a number of countries and started an asset management services to private and institutional clients.[4]Claude de Kemoularia was an important executive in the bank during this period. It also directs its activity towards businesses and participates in the development and restructuring of French industry including names such as Bull, CSF, Thomson.

In 1998. Paribas acquires the French bank - Compagnie Bancaire; and the merged entity is named as Compagnie Financière de Paribas

Merger with Bank de Paris (BNP)[edit]

In 1999, BNP and Société Générale fought a complex battle on the stock market, with Société Générale bidding for Paribas and BNP bidding for Société Générale and counter-bidding for Paribas. BNP's bid for Société Générale failed, while its bid for Paribas succeeded leading to a merger of BNP and Paribas one year later on 22 May 2000.

Controversies[edit]

Oil pre financing[edit]

Historically, Paribas has been actively involved in the financing of oil markets and had strong relations with Standard Oil. This was one of the reasons that Paribas was chosen in the funding agreement in the Iraq Oil-for-Food Programme. The technique of oil pre-financing consists of loans secured on future oil revenues. It was developed in the 1970s by the Marc Rich and his commodities brokerageGlencore and has been designated by the UN and the World Bank as a cause of impoverishment of oil producing countries and as one of key phenomena of kleptocracy.

Paribas Luxembourg[edit]

Paribas Luxembourg was closely linked to controversial Iraq business man Nadhmi Auchi. Links date back to the 1970s with the jointly controlled Continental Bank of Luxembourg. In early 1990, Auchi was the largest shareholder in Paribas with 12% share through Auchi's holding company General Mediterranean Holdings or GenMed. He played a key role in Paribas involvement of the Iraq Oil of Food programme signed by Saddam Hussein and the UN. Auchi played a major role in the BNP Paribas merger.

Arms sales to Angola[edit]

Judge Philippe Courroye investigated the role played by Banque Paribas in the case of arms sales to Angola in what became known as the Mitterrand–Pasqua affair. Between 1995 and 1997, the bank clearing department, then headed by Alain Bernard, funded $573 million of arms sales between Russia and Angola, according to Judge Courroye's investigations. Jean-Didier Maille, Alain Bernard's deputy, set up the financing and the two men would have received $30 million in commissions in foreign accounts for their actions. During Jean-Didier Maille's hearing in the investigation he said "the management was aware Paribas activities ... Alain Bernard ... Everyone knew he was paying commissions ... We called these activities: Special Affairs." For its part, André Levy-Lang, CEO of Paribas subsidiary Compagnie Bancaire said he was not aware of this case and the fees charged by Alain Bernard and Jean-Didier Maille.

Name[edit]

The abbreviated name Paribas was first created in the beginning of the 60s by the Flemish artist and entrepreneur Bobbejaan Schoepen during a visit from his neighbour and friend Maurits Naessens, who was a director of Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas in Belgium at the time.[5]